Unfair to compare? Tarik Skubal has picked up Justin Verlander's job as Detroit Tigers ace

Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch didn't sugarcoat it.

It's way too soon to compare Tarik Skubal and Justin Verlander.

Let Hinch explain.

"I hesitate to bring Tarik up when you talk about a future Hall of Famer," said Hinch, who has managed both Skubal and Verlander since the latter went from Detroit to Houston late in 2017. "It's probably a little unfair to both, but I can tell you I love their competitiveness similarly. ... I just hate the comparison part because Justin is a few thousand innings ahead of him. I think we see a lot of the makings of a front-end pitcher with Tarik, and he holds his own name. He doesn't need to be compared to anybody else."

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The primary reason Skubal, a left-handed flamethrower, is actively drawing comparisons to Verlander, a right-handed wizard, is because Skubal is arguably the only true ace the Tigers have had since Verlander's dominance in Detroit nearly a decade ago. And, of course, those comparisons get a lot easier whenever Verlander returns to his old stomping grounds in Comerica Park, as he has this weekend with the Houston Astros for a three-game series.

Verlander, now 41, pitched for the Tigers from 2005-17, then joined the Astros from 2017-22, spent a few months as a New York Met last season and returned to Houston at the trade deadline.

The back of the baseball card, over all those years, is Hall of Fame-worthy: a 3.25 ERA with 3,357 strikeouts in 3,347⅔ innings. Verlander won the American League Rookie of the Year in 2006, AL Cy Young awards in 2011, 2019 and 2022 and AL MVP in 2011. Skubal needs 2,919⅓ innings and 2,877 strikeouts — and more than a few trophies — to catch Verlander.

"I'm always rooting for the guys, the organization," Verlander said, "except when we play them."

Skubal's competitive nature — confident opposing hitters won't touch his best pitches — resembles the way Verlander attacks hitters. But when there isn't a batter in the box, Skubal is more relaxed. On the field, though, Skubal is visibly fiery from start to finish in each of his appearances, sometimes throwing his glove in the dugout in frustration. Verlander, however, remains stoic — actually resembling the Tigers' 2018 No. 1 overall pick, Casey Mize.

But Verlander and Skubal are both fierce competitors armed with overpowering fastballs and nasty secondary pitches.

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Skubal is the ace of the present; Verlander is the ace of the past.

That's what connects them.

"When you have a front-end type pitcher," Hinch said, "no matter where they're at in their career, whether it's beginning, middle or end, there's a characteristic that comes with that title, that tag or that exception, and how you handle that is going to help that facilitate even more so."

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Skubal affirmed his ace status once again in Saturday's 8-2 win over the Astros at Comerica Park, the day before Verlander was set to take the mound against the Tigers in Sunday's series finale.

He was in complete control.

Skubal allowed two runs — both in the fourth inning — on six hits and one walk with seven strikeouts in 6⅓ innings, throwing 97 pitches. The 27-year-old walked off the field for the finale time to a standing ovation from the fans in the stands at Comerica Park, just like Verlander did so many times.

"It's like watching one of the best pitchers in the world right now," said Kerry Carpenter, who launched a pair of home runs. "We get an up-close-and-personal view of it, so it's pretty fun."

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In Saturday's start, Skubal threw the first 100 mph pitch of his MLB career to Yainer Diaz, resulting in a foul ball, in the second inning. With that pitch, Skubal became the first Tigers starter to reach triple digits on the radar gun since Verlander in 2012, according to MLB.com's Jason Beck.

Getting to triple digits has been a fun goal for Skubal.

"I've always joked about doing it once in my career," Skubal said. "It's not the only thing I'm thinking about. I'm obviously thinking about elevating a fastball, but yeah, I think it's pretty cool."

It's early in the 2024 season, but Skubal is the frontrunner for the AL Cy Young. He commands a 2.02 ERA with eight walks and 60 strikeouts across 49 innings in eight starts. Among AL pitchers, he ranks third in ERA, second in strikeouts and tied for sixth in innings pitched. Skubal also ranks first with a 0.857 WHIP.

He has allowed just 14 earned runs in his last 13 starts, dating back to last season. He has an incredible 1.59 ERA with a whopping 103 strikeouts across 79 innings during that run, which included a nod as the AL's Pitcher of the Month in September.

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More importantly, Skubal has been one of the best pitchers in baseball — arguably the best pitcher in baseball — since returning from flexor tendon surgery on his left elbow roughly 10 months ago, logging a 2.51 ERA across 129⅓ innings in 23 starts. His 4.8 fWAR ranks first among all pitchers since his July 4 return.

Skubal is consistently dominant as the ace of the Tigers, just like Verlander used to be.

"One thing all the great pitchers do is they just stack good outing after good outing," Hinch said. "There's very little variance. You don't see the highest end of pitchers at this level disappear for stretches. They just stack good outing after good outing. They also evolve. It's evolving with the art of pitching."

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tarik Skubal has grabbed Justin Verlander's job as Detroit Tigers ace